St. Michael and All Angels (Observed)

Matthew 18:1-11

As a child, I would prepare for bed, get my pajamas on, brush my teeth, and get snug under the covers, and then I would use this prayer I was taught,

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
If I should die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take

It’s a prayer I’m sure many of you have also prayed or taught your little ones to say. It’s a meaningful prayer, and because of its rhyme, it’s also very easy to remember.

Some believe this prayer was written by the English clergyman George Wheler and published around 1698. However, others think it was inspired by an earlier German version called “The Black Paternoster,” which simply means the “evening Our Father.” (Paternoster means “Our father” in Latin)

The Black Paternoster goes as such,

Mathew, Mark, Luke, John
Bless the bed that I lie on;
And blessed guardian angel keep
Me safe from danger while I sleep.

However, some believe that even this version of the prayer might originate from a medieval Jewish prayer that went like this,

“In the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, may Michael be at my right hand; Gabriel at my left; Uriel before me; Raphael behind me and the Shekhinah of God be above my head.”

And just so you know, Shekhinah is Hebrew for the presence of God or His dwelling place.

But if all of this is true—that the prayer we know today as “Now I lay me down to sleep” has an unusual origin tracing back to this Jewish prayer—and it has really changed a lot. 

Requests for angelic protection from danger and similar matters are no longer included, as they have become more obscure. 

It is also worth noting that these original versions of the bedtime prayers were sometimes flawed. For example, we don’t pray to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John to bless our beds and watch over us.

However, all of this should make you think more carefully about your prayers, including their origin, history, and what they express.

And this leads me to wonder: why haven’t we, as Lutherans, fully embraced and used the Evening Prayer that Martin Luther provided to the Church and included in the Small Catechism as we should? 

In many ways, Luther has taken everything from the past and present versions of “Now I lay me down to sleep” and provided the Church with a prayer of great depth.

Luther’s Evening Prayer goes like this,

I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day; and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.

Ponder the prayer with me.

First, Luther begins the prayer by thanking God, his heavenly Father, through His dear Son, Jesus. Remember, all prayers are to be made through Jesus Christ. (John 14:13-14) But then the prayer guides you to thank God your Father for keeping you throughout the day, whether it was a good or a bad day. 

However, the next part of the prayer is a crucial aspect of the Christian life that many of our prayers overlook at the end of the day. Luther’s Evening Prayer continues to say, “and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night.”

As the Psalmist writes,

In peace I will both lie down and sleep;

                        for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety. (Psalm 4:8)

How can you lie down at night in peace if your sins still trouble you and there hasn’t been forgiveness? You won’t!

But know this: forgiveness is peace, and this gracious gift begins with your Savior, Jesus Christ. For this reason, every day you dwell in this world, the temptation of sin surrounds you, but you also have a Father who sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for you. So, make it a habit to pray and ask your Father in heaven for this wonderful gift of peace and forgiveness. 

Alright, but now the final section of Luther’s Evening Prayer arrives, and it begins as such, 

For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things.

The Christian now entrusts their bodies and souls into God’s care, trusting Him to watch over them. Consider this: who else can watch over you while you sleep? Are you not most vulnerable to the world and the attacks of evil when your body lies on the pillow? How could you fend off even a dream at this moment without God’s help?  

And for this reason, the prayer concludes, “Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.”

It’s a petition for God to send His messengers and guardians to be with you, watch over you, and keep you safe from the temptations of the Evil One who resides in the dark shadows of this life. 

But if you do not exercise your faith and prayers in such a way, will you even remember that God continues to care for you throughout the hours of the night, or that He sends His angels to care for you?

This is one reason for observing the festival of St. Michael and All Angels: to remember that God cares for you through His angels. But beyond today, you must also remember that God’s angels continue to care for and watch over you, even if you don’t see them. They do this not as cute cherubs shooting magical arrows of love, but as His warriors, as the Psalmist again says. 

            The angel of the LORD encamps

                        around those who fear him, and delivers them. (Psalm 34:7)

God’s angels encamp around you to defend, protect, and deliver you from the evil and temptations of this life.

They do so because you are God’s children. Don’t get caught up in the Gospel today and only think of a child like those who make sounds during the Divine Service, infusing it with life and excitement; instead, consider yourself God’s child, because this is what the Gospel says. 

And as His child, you are in need of protection – protection from the temptation and inclination to sin.

The temptation of being led away from God.

The temptation of using your speech or actions to lead other Christians away from God into sin throughout your days.

The truth is that we sin often and greatly need God’s care and mercy. The wonderful thing is that He is gracious and eager to give it to us. However, we also need to make it a habit of asking for His care and mercy. 

For a long time, our catechisms have served as textbooks, meant for a brief period to teach the young, then placed on a shelf or tucked away in a closet. However, as God’s children, our learning is never supposed to stop; instead, we are called to keep growing, deepen our faith, and mature.  

It’s time for us to pull out our catechism, and if we don’t know where they are, to get a new one.

Because on these pages, faith is given to us, God’s dear children, in simple terms, and the prayers provided by Luther have often gone unnoticed or fallen out of use. But in these words, we are given not only an opportunity to confess our faith, our sins, our need for a Savior, but also His ongoing care through the work of His angels. 

What a gift that God doesn’t leave you to the known and unknown evils of this life, but sends His angels to serve Him by protecting you.

To God be the glory!

+INJ+

Rev. Noah J. Rogness

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church

Tomah, WI

www.goodsheptomah.org